Review of Bannatyne Spa Hotel, Hastings

Bannatyne Spa Hotel Hastings at Good Spa Guide

Bannatyne Spa Hotel, Hastings - 3 bubbles

We packed Sensitive Spy off to Hastings to sample the Bannatyne Spa Hotel. She found a hotel, with a separate health club, and the health club had some treatment rooms. Not a completely joined up "spa" experience, then, but there are good value and professional spa and beauty treatments on offer. And we're still a little amazed by her toes.

First impressions?

How did they welcome you?

What happens next?

Which treatments did you have?

What were the treatments like?

How did you feel afterwards?

What happens afterwards?

Was it worth it?

What else could you have?

What do you wish you'd known before you went?

Who do you think would like it?

Why did you give the spa this rating?

Would you go again?

First impressions?

I asked the taxi driver to take me to the Bannatyne Spa Hotel. He dropped me off in front of a large, modern health club on the outskirts of Hastings. No immediate sign of a spa. Or, indeed, a hotel.

How did they welcome you?

I entered the Bannatyne Health Club through the sliding glass doors and immediately received a warm welcome at reception. A member of staff went to find the manager, Sarah, who gave me a guided tour of the club, and handed me a robe in a Bannatyne's carrier bag.

Bannatyne's Health Club is laid out over three floors. The 20-metre swimming pool is on the ground floor, along with changing rooms, a sauna and steam room, a cafe bar and (aha!) the Sensory Spa. The spa has five treatment rooms, a beauty salon and a relaxation room.

There's a large, modern gym upstairs, which has Power Plates and free weights, along with a spinning room (of the cycling sort, not the textile variety). Health Club members were working up a sweat in an aerobics class in the studio, while others were Pilates-ing to their heart's content with big rubber bands in the Mind and Body room.

What happens next?

Tour over, I made my way to the changing rooms. These are large and bright and were busy, although spacious enough to not feel crowded with over 20 other spa-goers there, too. Or rather, health club members. Looking around, I could see that I was the only one with a robe. Everyone else seemed to be getting ready for a swim or a spin.

I bagged my locker with a pound coin and changed into my cossie for a bit of lounging before lunch and my spa treatments later that afternoon.

The swimming pool: The 20-metre pool was warm and inviting, with a lane for lap bunnies and plenty of space for the less committed to bob around in. There were a couple of loungers at the side of the pool, and a good sized sauna, steam room and Jacuzzi next to it.

The steam room was pleasantly hot with a sinus-clearing mint and eucalyptus aroma. After steaming for 10 minutes or so, I decided to cool down in the outdoor hot tubs. There are two of these, which you reach by going through a door at the far end of the pool area.

The outdoor hot tubs are on a very new decking area around the back of the spa. They were deliciously warm and bubbly and it was great to relax in the hot water, watching the steam rise into the cold winter air. Facing in one direction, you can see the back of the health club (not very inspiring) or, the other way, a very recently planted landscape area. Maybe once this matures, this area will look more picturesque.

Time flies when you're swimming and steaming and hot-tubbing, and soon it was time for lunch in the Spa Hotel. I made my way back to the changing room, got changed back into civvies, and met up with Sarah again, who showed me where the hotel was.

The Bannatyne Spa Hotel is a couple of minutes' walk away from the health club, through the huge health club park, and then through the hotel's own car park. It's not a journey you'd embark on in your robe.

The Spa Hotel is a Georgian-style hotel, set in lovely, formal grounds (once you've navigated the car parks). As I was there for a spa day, not a spa stay, I only got a peek at one of the bedrooms, a spacious double in the new wing. The décor was very much Malmaison Lite. Lots of black and red but offset with pretty patterned wallpaper to lighten the tone.

I had lunch in the hotel's conservatory dining area, which looks out onto the formal garden. You can also eat in the main dining room. There was a good choice of options on the lunch menu, from traditional English classics, to a special vegetarian menu. My wild mushroom salad with polenta was plentiful and delicious. I wolfed it down while watching the squirrels and jays cavort around the garden. All very pleasant.

Lunch over, I trekked back through the car parks to the health club. I was a little early for my treatments so I decided to lie down and digest my lunch in the Sensory Spa's relaxation room. This relaxation area has six tiled, heated loungers. You can help yourself to water from a jug, and listen to rather-too-loud ambient music. There was a pleasingly eclectic selection of magazines, from Prima to Marie Claire via Four Four Two. I nabbed myself a Word magazine. If only I could spend more afternoons reclined on a heated lounger reading a Brian Eno interview...

After 15 minutes or so, my therapist, Lisa, popped her head around the door to introduce herself and gave me a consultation form. She returned after a few minutes to collect the form and take me through to the treatment rooms for my first treatment. The Sensory Spa's treatment rooms are dimly dramatic and minimalist. A big black panel is suspended from the ceiling with bright pink lights shining out from behind it. When you lie on the couch, it feels like you're looking up at a monolith. A few choice Elemis products were spotlit in a stark cabinet on the wall, alongside a modern abstract canvas.

Which treatments did you have?

I had an Elemis Fruit Glow facial (£42, 55 minutes) and a Leighton Denny Pristine pedicure (£37, 40 minutes).

What were the treatments like?

Really good. I began with the Elemis facial. Lisa asked me to remove my shoes, top, and bra, and lie down on the couch under a sarong. Lisa left the room while I disrobed, and returned a few minutes later to swaddle me in warm towels. Lovely. The facial began with a foot ritual, which involved plenty of foot massage: a really relaxing way to start the treatment.

Lisa began the facial part of the facial with a thorough cleanse with Lime Blossom cleanser and Lavender toner, before a gentle exfoliation with Elemis Gentle Rose exfoliator. She then applied a deliciously fruity-scented mask and gave me an arm and hand massage while the mask worked its magic. The facial ended with Elemis Pro-Collagen Marine cream moisturiser and eye cream.

After my facial, Lisa left the treatment room while I got dressed. She met me in the spa reception area and took me through to the beauty salon for my pedicure.

My Leighton Denny pedicure was great. I sat in a comfortable wicker chair and Lisa brought me a coffee, while I watched the ladies of Hastings having haircuts and booking manicures. The spa had a good choice of varnish colours; I opted for a sinister-looking green colour. Lisa suggested that we pretty it up with a silver glitter top-coat. I can never refuse glitter. After forty minutes of exfoliating, filing, buffing and varnishing, my feet looked great. You wouldn't have thought that they'd been hiding in winter boots for the last three months.

How did you feel afterwards?

I had been suffering from classic pre-Christmas skin: dry and dehydrated, from a combination of central heating, icy wind, too much coffee and too little sleep. This Elemis facial was a perfect winter pick-me-up. My skin was left feeling revived and plumped up.

My feet looked fantastic. Smoothed and soothed with slightly evil-looking, yet festive, green toes. I was ready for the Slytherin House Christmas party.

What happens afterwards?

I picked up my bag and boots and decamped to the relaxation room for more lounging on a heated lounger while I waited for my nail colour to dry.

Was it worth it?

Yes. Both the facials and the pedicure were excellent treatments.

What else could you have?

The Sensory Spa offers Elemis facials and body treatments, including massages and AromaSpa wraps. There is a small range of alternative therapies, along with Ionithermie treatments. Hairdressing and beautification gets equal billing on the spa menu, alongside the traditional spa therapies, with a St Tropez tan, waxing, mani or pedi, hairdressing services and make-up make-overs. The men of Hastings aren't forgotten on the preening front, either; they have their own beauty menu, with back waxing, custom manicures, suitably manly facials and hair styling.

When I visited, the Sensory Spa was offering a party season special - a mini manicure, pedicure, fake tan and Bare Escentuals make-up make over for just £42. Not surprisingly, this was proving very popular.

What do you wish you'd known before you went?

That the hotel was completely separate from the health club and Sensory Spa treatment rooms. I'd have managed my drifting-around-in-a-robe expectations.

Who do you think would like it?

Bannatyne Health Club members. Lucky them, having such stylish treatment rooms as part of their health club. They get 10 per cent off all treatments, too.

Why did you give the spa this rating?

We gave the Bannatyne Spa Hotel 3 bubbles because it's not really a Spa Hotel. It's a hotel, with a separate health club, and the health club has a suite of treatment rooms. While the treatment rooms, health club, and hotel all work beautifully in their own right, they are all too disconnected to offer a true "spa" experience. This isn't somewhere where you can drift from pool, to treatment, to lunch in your robe, much less enjoy a "spa retreat", as offered on the Bannatyne Spa Hotel website.

There's no sense of spa hush outside of the treatment rooms and relaxation area. The changing rooms and pool area are very much health club rather than spa (Lux body wash in the shower, for example) and the spa shares loo facilities with the health club. I needed the loo between treatments and had to nip through the busy cafe bar area to the family changing rooms to use the facilities there. It completely popped the spa bubble for me.

However, the treatments at the Sensory Spa are good value and high quality. The Sensory Spa had only been open a few months when we were invited to visit, but it was already busy with bookings. Ladies Who Party in Hastings and Bannatyne's Health Club members clearly know a good spa bargain when they see one. Pop in for a treatment or two and you won't be disappointed. Just don't expect spa atmosphere away from the treatment rooms.

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